Is it a crim or an eastern?

Crimson Rosellas and Eastern Rosellas are two of Australia’s most common and colourful parrots. 

Crimson Rosella - note full crimson belly and rump, blue cheeks, etc.

Ever since first settlement, both these birds have been recognised for their beauty. 

Eastern Rosella - white cheeks, yellow belly, black and yellow back, etc.

There are two theories on the derivation of ‘rosella’.

The artist John Gould, (who named the Gouldian Finch, Erythrura gouldiae, after his wife, hence the feminine gouldiae rather than gouldii but pronounced the same), is believed to have used the name Rose Hill Parakeet after early settlers using that term for Eastern Rosellas often seen in the Rose Hill area. Rose Hill Parakeet was thought to be shortened to ‘Rose-Hiller’ and eventually ‘Rosella’.

Gouldian Finch or sometimes Lady Gouldian Finch (Image - Wikipedia)

Another story is that in 1830, John Gilbert named the birds ‘Rosetta Parrots’, (in a list of wildlife commonly shot!), and a slip of the pen resulted in ‘Rosella’.

Who knows? Doesn’t matter, both the Eastern and Crimson Rosella that inhabit our parks and gardens in Drouin are welcome visitors simply for their attractive plumage.

Next time you see an ‘eastern’ or a ‘crim’, take a good look, you may notice something a bit different about the odd individual bird.

Eastern Rosellas belong to the ‘white-cheeked’ branch of the ‘rosella’ family and Crimson Rosellas are ‘blue-cheeked’ birds. (I don’t want to confuse matters too much further, but there are also Yellow Rosellas, Northern Rosellas, Green Rosellas, Pale-headed Rosellas and Western Rosellas but not around here). 

Yellow Rosella, South Australia - note blue cheeks.

Anyway, every now and then a bird will come along that looks very like an Eastern Rosella but has blue cheeks, (and is more extensively crimson than red, less yellow on the back, etc).

Crim or eastern? Blue(ish) cheeks, etc. (Drouin backyard)

Crimson and easterns will sometimes hybridize. Also, it is suspected that colour variation in some Crimson Rosellas is due to a virus.

Eastern and 'Crim-eastern' beside one another.

I know, I am a sad individual!